Another early departure for Kournikova

Anna Kournikova's hint of a revival during the lead up to the US Open evaporated in the first round yesterday. The 21-year-old Russian was jeered off Louis Armstrong Stadium after being swept aside, 6-3, 6-0, by Angelique Widjaja, a 17-year-old former Wimbledon junior champion from Indonesia.

Widjaja, the reigning French Open junior champion, arrived here with one thing more than Kournikova ­ a WTA title, won in Bali last year ­ and proceded to display the greater composure and snappier shot-making. Kournikova has now lost in the first round of each of the four Grand Slam tournaments this year, winning only one set. Her lack of confidence was evident from the number of moon-balls she played during the rallies.

In losing in the first round for the first time in five visits to the US Open, Kournikova committed 40 unforced errors, four of them double-faults.

Lindsay Davenport, having spent eight months in the background rehabilitating after knee surgery, played her first Grand Slam match of the year yesterday. The former Wimbledon women's singles champion had an ideal loosener in the first round, defeating Eva Dryberg, of Denmark, 6-2, 6-1.

Davenport's appearance in Arthur Ashe Stadium, the scene of her US Open triumph in 1998, followed an equally one-sided opening match in which Justine Henin, of Belgium, defeated the American Samantha Reeves, 6-1, 6-2. Henin, the runner-up to Venus Williams at Wimbledon last year, has not enjoyed the best of health at the major tournaments this season. The eighth seed won in 67 minutes. There was so little to discuss about the match that Henin was asked if she liked her opponent's lilac dress. "Yeah," she said.

Albert Costa, of Spain, who missed Wimbledon in order to go on honeymoon after winning the French Open in June, opened proceedings in Louis Armstrong Stadium with a 6-2, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win against Magnus Norman, of Sweden, who is feeling his way in at the top level of the game after a hip injury.

While not wishing to race ahead of events, it seems appropriate to acknowledge that Paradorn Srichaphan, Thailand's No 1, should figure prominently in the fortunes of British tennis. He may play Greg Rusedski in the men's singles second round here, a contest of great interest given Britain's Davis Cup World Group qualifying round tie against Thailand in Birmingham next month.

Two American wild cards stand in the way of a Rusedski-Srichaphan match here. The British No 2 is due to play Alex Kim, of Potomac, and Srichaphan meets Prakash Amritraj, of California, the son of Vijay Amritraj, the former India Davis Cup player.

En route to Flushing Meadows, Srichaphan paused and bowed his forehead to touch the Centre Court in Commack, Long Island, after winning the Hamlet Cup, his first ATP Tour title, on Sunday. The 23-year-old from Bangkok and his followers had waited patiently for the breakthrough, encouraged by his straight-sets win against Andre Agassi in the second round at Wimbledon and his advance to the final in Washington earlier this month, only to lose to the American James Blake.

For his match against Blake, Srichaphan wore a red shirt, the Thai colour representing victory. Undeterred by the outcome, he chose to wear red again in the third set of the Long Island final against Juan Ignacio Chela, of Argentina, whom Srichaphan defeated, 5-7, 6-2, 6-2.

In addition to becoming the first Thai to win an ATP title, Srichaphan also became the first man from his country to be ranked in the world's top 50 (he is No 33). Not that he is instantly recognisable. Srichaphan was stopped by security on his way to the practice courts yesterday and sent back to the accreditation office because there was an error on his ID badge. Blips happen: for two days your correspondent masqueraded as Joshua P Roberts.

Rusedski has no doubt about Srichaphan's potential and expects him to test Britain in the Davis Cup irrespective of what happens at the US Open. "It's not going to be as easy a match as we'd hoped," Rusedski said, "because he's really raised his game this year."